Wyrda: Father of Dragons (Eragon Book 5)

Chapter 11: To Lead an Army

              The city of Dras Leona lied in front of the lonely figure as he walked in the dark stone road. He looked tired, and his clothes were covered with the blood of his enemies. He was walking with a limp as a soldier had managed to injure his left leg. His expression was one of defeat, and his eyes showed the horrors he had seen in the battle he had been in. Ahead of him thousands of ragged men, screaming women and crying children were trying to enter the city to protect themselves from the army that was pursuing them close behind. Many people tried to enter the city but the guards prevented them. The man looked at the people he had to pass in anger and touched his hammer. A sudden movement caught his eye, as a noise started to be heard around him. People turned as they saw him, a glimmer of hope in their eyes as they whispered his name and the crowd silenced around him as they respectfully opened a way for him to pass. He was a hero of the Varden and the army and everyone knew of his deeds.

              Roran Stronghammer walked amongst the crowd, in seriousness as he waved his hand above his head to greet the people outside the city. At this, the people cheered and soldiers banged their weapons on their shields. In truth, Roran thought that the soldiers were right. The city had little hope of surviving the upcoming attack and in order to save their lives, the citizens needed to move to Illeria, where they would have a better chance of surviving. A shiver ran through his body as he remembered the screams of dying women and children and the blood as a head flew past him in battle. He saw with his mind the image of his wife and kids lying dead and he quickly shook his head to get these thoughts away from his mind. He would not let another massacre take place. He would not let any harm fall on his family. By the time the citizens had arrived in Illeria, Eragon and Saphira and the other dragon riders could come and help them in their fight. The elves and the dwarves would have more time to amass their armies and King Orrin had no hope of defeating them.

             A city guard stopped him outside the gates of the city with his spear and ordered him to present himself. Roran did so and the soldier widened his eyes and let him pass through the gates with an embarrassed expression.

          He walked amongst the empty streets and saw the closed windows and doors of all the houses. There were no merchants shouting their wares with their loud voice, or children running in the streets shouting cheerfully and playing. There still was a large open space, in the center of the city where a large government  building had been. The ruins of Helgrind in the outskirts of Dras Leona could still be seen, reminding the citizens of the war against Galbatorix and of Dras Leona's dark history of slave trading. Helgrind was the place where the Razac had kept Katrina imprisoned for almost a year and it was the place where he and Eragon had taken their revenge on the Razac for the death of his father Garrow. He remembered visiting the city a few years before, when the war had ended. The city had been full of happy faces and people were drinking and dancing merrily, celebrating the second year of freedom from Galbatorix's rule. He still remembered the tune of a drunk man singing, the song eerily playing in his mind in the now empty city. Somewhere a brick fell, creating a loud noise, making Roran jump. Being in a empty large city made his senses peak as if he was in battle. With the corner of his eye he saw a tall man slowly coming towards him, with a serious and angry expression. The man wore heavy dark clothes and his black beard covered most of his skin on his face. He looked like a magician and Roran quickly closed his thoughts as Eragon had taught him to do.

"Roran Stronghammer! What a pleasant surprise!." the man said with a fake smile. His voice reminded him of that of a snake. "I am Dyrfod, of the Du Vrangr Gata, and I am the person responsible for the magic users in the city of Dras Leona. Martland Redbeard heard that you arrived in the city and he immediately sent me to find you, for the news are grim from the city of Belatonna, although judging from your appearance, you already know that..." Dyrfod said, his eyes judging his appearance and watching and measuring Roran's every move.